Wind actuated collapsible awning



Jan. 17, 1967 v w. B. RUIZ 3,298,422

WIND ACTUATED COLLAPSIBLE AWNING Filed Nov. 2, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. WILLIAM B. RUIZ LWSM ATTORNEY Jan. 17, 1967 w. B. u z Q 3,298,422

WIND AGTUATED COLLAPSIBLE AWNING INVENTOR.

\ I WILLIAM B. RUIZ BY awmhmcu I ATTORN E y.

United States Fatent ()fiice 3,298,422 Patented Jan. 17, 1967 My invention relates to collapsible window or door awnings and the principal object of my invention is to provide a collapsible awning which includes mechanism for manually extending or withdrawing the awning from the inside of an associated window or door frame, and which in addition, when in extended or open condition, will automatically move into closed or withdrawn position when subjected to winds of such strength as might otherwise injure the awning.

A more particular object is to provide a collapsible awning of the character above described having a plurality of arcuate ribs radiating from a central support structure and operative to fan out from one side to the other to carry a flexible fabric hood from closed or withdrawn position into umbrella-like open or extended relation above a window or door frame when manually actuate-d from within the building, and including means controlled by wind pressure for automatically closing the awning to prevent wind damage.

Another object is to provide an awning of the above nature wherein the fabric hood can readily be replaced to renew the awning or change its color or pattern at minimum expense.

Yet another object is to provide an awning of the character described which will be inexpensive to manufacture, compact, light in weight, easy to install and operate, and durable in use.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description when read with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the awning as seen in extended position from underneath;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view, taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1 in the direction of the arrows and on an enlarged scale with portions broken away to illustrate mechanical details of the operating mechanism;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary diagrammatic perspective further illustrating details of the operating mechanism shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 44 of FIG. 2 in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 1 in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 6 is a partial diagrammatic view illustrating details of the catch mechanism for holding the awning in withdrawn or closed condition;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 77 of FIG. 2 in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the awning as seen when in closed or withdrawn position.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates by way of example, a preferred embodiment of my improved, collapsible awning, the same comprising, generally, a housing member 11, top rib members 13 through 18 pivotally secured at one end to said housing member, and a semi-circular flexible hood member 19 secured to said rib members and to a fixed end rib 12.

The housing member 11, which is preferably formed of a light-weight sheet metal such as aluminum, comprises a rectangular base portion 20 integrally formed with outwardly-extending parallel upper and lower rectangular walls 21 and 22, respectively. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the inner ends of the pivotally connected arcuate top rib members 13, 14, 16 and 17 are formed with laterally off-set end portions 13a, 14a, 16a and 17a that are journalled in openings 13b, 14b, 16b and 17b in the upper rectangular wall 21 of the housing member 11, said openings being arranged along an oblique line to permit compact folding together of said rib members when the awning is in withdrawn condition as illustrated in FIG. 8. The outermost top rib 18 is curved near its inner end, as indicated at 18a, and extends through an opening 18b in the upper wall 21 that is somewhat inwardly off-set from the line along which the openings 13b, 14b, 16b and 1711 fall. The inner end of the fixed end rib 12 is secured to the base portion 20 of the housing member 11 in any convenient fashion.

For each of the top ribs 13, 14, 16 and 17 there is provided a bottom rib 13d, 14d, 16d and 170., respectively, similarly pivotally connected in vertically aligned openings in the lower wall 22 of the housing member 11, said bottom ribs being substantially coextensive with their respective top ribs, but straight rather than arcuate in form. The outer ends of the rib pairs 13, 13d, 14, 14d, 16, 16d and 17, 17d are fixed in side openings provided in disklike end knobs 23 by cotter pins 24 extending through vertically drilled openings in said ribs and knobs. The eyes at the upper ends of the cotter pins 24 provide convenient tie means for the flexible awning hood member 19, as is hereinbelow more fully explained.

The central top rib 15, as is best illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, is of somewhat increased diameter and bent in place to provide a vertical connector portion 25 extending through top and bottom openings 15c and 26 in the upper and lower walls 21, 22, respectively, of the housing member 11, and to provide an integral bottom rib portion 15d, coextensive with said top rib. A knob 23 secured by a cotter pin 24 also holds the outer ends of the rib pairs 15a, 15d in relatively fixed relation. The lower opening 26 is elongated, as is best illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, to permit upward swinging of the central rib assembly for the purpose hereinafter appearing,

The outermost top rib 18 is also of increased diameter for increased strength, and bent in place to provide a connecting axle portion 27 extending through top and bottom openings 18b and 28 in the upper and lower walls of the housing member 11, and to provide an integral bottom rib portion 18d. The bottom rib portion 18d is double-bent near its outer end to provide a short, vertically-extending nose portion 29 and a terminal portion 33 which lies along the underside of the outer end portion of the top rib 18 and is coextensive therewith and joined thereto by a knob 23 and cotter pin 24. A helical torsion spring 31 is mounted circumjacent the axle 27 of the outermost rib assembly 18, 18d and has one end 32 secured to said axle as by fixing in a diametrical opening therein, and the other end 33 secured in an opening in the upper wall 21 of the housing member 11. The torsion spring 31 is so biased as to urge the outermost rib assembly 13, 18d into closed or withdrawn position against the fixed end rib 12.

The flexible hood member 19 is preferably made of a heavy waterproof canvas of a suitable color or printed with an attractive design or pattern, as desired. The arcuate hood member has se'wn against its underside radial strips 34 at central portions and hems 35 and 36 at end portions to provide channels through which the top ribs 12 through 18 extend in fan-like fashion. The center of the hood member 19 overlies a semi-circular cap 37, which may be of wood, secured to the upper wall 21 of the housing member 11 as by a bolt 38 and nut 39. A washer 40 under the nut 39 bears down against the inner end portion of the hood member 19 overlying the cap 37 to hold it in place. Tie strings 41 sewn at the outer ends of the strips 34 and hems 35 and 36 can be looped through the eyes of the cotter pins 24 at the outer ends of the awning ribs to secure the hood member 19 in place and permit easy removal of the hood member for replacement or repair.

Means is provided for holding the outermost rib assembly 18, 18a in open or extended position. To this end, as is best illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, a channel member 42 of U-shaped cross-section is secured at one end against the back of the base portion 26 of the housing member 11 as by bolts 43 and extends outwardly thereof in the direction opposite that of the fixed rib 12. As indicated at 44- in FIG. 2, side wall portions of the channel member 42 are partially cut away to permit the inside of the 'web portion thereof to fit in spaced relation to the housing base portion 29. Side wa-ll portions of the channel member 42 are cut away at the outer end thereof to permit bending up of a web portion 45 providing an opening 416 (see FIG. 2) journalling the outer end of a push rod 47 disposed within said channel. The outer end of the push rod 47, as best illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 6, is bent outwardly of the channel opening and slightly backwardly to provide an inclined cam portion 43. The outer end of the cam portion 48 merges into a backwardly-extending portion 49 terminating in a short upwardly-extending portion journalled in an opening 56 at a central position in a lever 51 of double-bent strip metal. The inner or doubled end of the lever 51 is formed with spaced side portions 52, 53 which envelop the push rod 47. The inner end of the lever 51 is pivotally journalled to the channel member 42 by the outer end portion of an arcuate fixed top rib 54 extending through aligned openings in said channel member and said lever, the inner end of said top rib being secured against the back of the base portion 20 of the housing member 11 in any convenient manner.

The inner end of the push rod 47 extends through a longitudinal slot 55 in the base portion 20 of the housing member and is formed with an inclined portion 56 which embraces the vertical connector portion 25 of the central rib assembly 15, d and which terminates in an outwardly-extending end portion 57 which anchors one end of a helical tension spring 53. The other end of the tension spring 58 is secured to the lower righthand (as seen in FIG. 2) corner of the housing member base portion and serves to resiliently urge the push rod 47 into its outermost position. In this position, as is best illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the inner end of the inclined cam portion 48 of the push rod 47 extends slightly beyond the nose portion 29 of the bottom rib 18d, so that when the rib assembly 18, 18d is swung to the channel member 42, said nose portion will ride along said cam portion causing said push rod to be withdrawn against the urging of tension spring 58 until said nose portion passes beyond said cam portion, whereupon said cam portion will move outwardly again to latch behind said nose portion to lock the rib assembly 18, 18d in place and thereby hold the awning in open or extended position.

Means is provided for manually unlocking the rib assembly 118,- Md from its open or extended position so that it will move to closed or withdrawn position (as illustrated in FIG. 8) under the influence of torsion spring 31. To this end, a flexible cable or cord 59 extends through a tubular conduit 64), bent into right angular shape, one end of which is secured in an opening in the back of the channel member 42 near the outer end thereof. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the tubular conduit 6th is adapted to extend through an opening in the building wall upon installation of the awning, and for this purpose is preferably made of a soft metal tubing that can be installed before being downwardly bent at the inside, thereby facilitating installation and at the same time permitting adjustment to various wall thicknesses. One end of the cord 59 is fixed to the outer end of the lever 51 whereby, when the other end is pulled at the inside of the window or doorway over which the awning is installed, said lever will be moved in the clockwise direction as seen in FIG. 3 to move the push rod 47 inwardly and thereby unlatch the rib assembly 18,. 18d to permit the awning to move into closed or withdrawn position.

As hereinabove described, strong breezes or wind will also control the push rod mechanism to unlatch the end rib assembly and thereby penmit the awning to automatically swing into closed or withdrawn position to prevent wind damage. In this operation, dangerously strong Winds or gusts will exert enough pressure from underneath the awning to raise the central rib assembly 15, 15a, causing it to rock upwardly to the extent permitted by the elongated bottom opening 26 (see FIG. 3). Corresponding outward movement of the vertical connector portion 25 of the central rib assembly 15, 15d, riding against the inclined portion 56 of the push rod 4'7 will cause said push rod to be withdrawn against the urging of tension spring 58 to unlatch the rib assembly 18, 18d thereby permitting the awning to move automatically into its closed or withdrawn position under the influence of torsion spring 31.

Means is provided for automatically and releasably latching the awning in its closed or withdrawn position when swung thereto under the influence of the torsion spring 31. To this end, a U-shaped rectangular cover member 61 is provided for the housing member 11, said cover member having outwardly-extending flanges 62 (only one shown in FIG. 6) seatable against marginal side portions of the base portion 20 of said housing member and secured thereto as by screws 63. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the cover member 61 has outwardly stuck from a lower marginal edge portion thereof a hook member 64 having a sidewardly-projecting inclined nose portion 65. A latch rod 66 has one end pivotally secured in an opening in the top end rib member 18 near the inner end thereof, and the other end formed in a loop 66a around the bottom rib member 18d in seating engagement against the free end of a helical compression spring 67 circurnjacent said bottom rib member. The other end of the spring 67 is anchored in a opening in said bottom rib member. As illustrated by the broken line representation thereof in FIG. 6, the hook member 64 and the latch rod 66 are so relatively positioned that when the awning is swung into fully closed or withdrawn position, said latch rod will ride down over the inclined nose portion 65 of the hook member 64 to be caught thereunder by return action of the compression spring 67, thereby securing the awning in withdrawn position as is illustrated in FIG. 8.

Means is provided for manually releasing the awning from its withdrawn and latched condition from the inside of the window or doorway to which the awning is installed. To this end a ring 68 is provided on the lower rib 18d at the outside of the catch rod loop 66a, and a flexible cord 69 tied to said ring extends through the tubular conduit 60. As can be seen in FIG. 6, pulling upon the cord 69 from the inside of the building will cause the ring 68 to move inwardly into abutting position against the loop 66a of the latch rod 66, causing said latch rod to be moved out of engagement with the hook member 64. Pulling on the cord 69 will also impart such a force to the bottom rib 18d as to cause it to swing into the open or extended position whereat it will automatically latch by virtue of action of the push rod 47 as hereinabove described. As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 7, holes 70 are provided in the base portion 26 of the housing member 11, and two or more holes (not illustrated) are provided in the channel member 42 for attaching the awning structure in place by means of bolts or screws 71. The outer end of the fixed end rib 12 is secured against the building wall as by a clamp 72.

While there is illustrated and described herein only one form in which the invention may conveniently be embodied in practice, it is to be understood that this form is presented by way of example only, and not in a limiting sense. The invention, in brief, comprises all the embodiments and modifications coming within the scope and spirit of the following claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A wind actuated collapsible awning comprising, in combination, a central support structure, a plurality of arcuate rib members each pivotally secured at one end to said central support structure and extending radially outwardly therefrom, a flexible hood member stretched in covering relation upon and between said rib members when in spaced fan-like, extended disposition to an armate extent of substantially 180 circular degrees relative to said central support structure whereat said awning will be in extended position, means removably securing said hood member to said ribs, means resiliently urging one of the end ribs of said plurality of rib members arcuately in the direction of the other of said end ribs for bunching said ribs together at one side for withdrawing the awning, releasable means for latching said awning in said withdrawn position, releasable means for latching said awning in said extended position, and mechanism controlled by wind pressure exerted under said awning when in extended position operative to release said releasable means for latching said awning in said extended position to permit automatic withdrawal of said awning by said urging means.

2. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 1 wherein said means removably securing said hood member to said ribs comprises a plurality of longitudinal channels through which said rib members extend, tie strings secured to said hood at the outer ends of said channels, and means for tying said strings to the outer ends of their respective rib members.

3. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means latching said awning in said withdrawn position comprises a hook member having a sidewardly-inclined nose portion fixed wth respect to said support structure and a catch rod pivotally secured at one end to said one of said ribs, and means resiliently securing the other end of said catch rod with respect to said one of said ribs, said catch rod being so disposed with respect to said hook member as to yieldingly slide over said nose portion to be caught thereunder when said awning is moved to withdrawn position.

4. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 3 including a flexible cord, and means connecting one end of said cord with said catch rod for moving said catch rod out from under said hook member nose portion for releasing said awning, said cord extending through a tubular conduit fixed with respect to said support member for directing the other end thereof through the Wall of a building against which the awning is to be installed, whereby said cord can be pulled from within the building for manually releasing said withdrawn position latching means and moving said awning in-to extended position against the force of said urging means.

5. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means latching said awning in said extended position comprises a push rod extending outwardly of one side of said support structure and longitudinally movable between in and out positions with respect thereto, resilient means normally urging said push rod in said out position, said push rod being provided at its outer end with an outwardly-extending, inclined cam portion, said one of said rib members having a nose portion so disposed as to slide over and beyond said inclined cam portion when said awning is moved into extended position to be latched therebehind, a second cord, and means connecting one end of said second cord with said push rod for moving said push rod into the second of said positions when said second cord is pulled.

6. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 5 including a tubular conduit fixed with respect to said support member for directing the other end of said second cord through the wall of a building against which the awning is to be installed, whereby said second cord can be pulled from within the building for manually releasing said extended position latching means to permit said awning to move into withdrawn position under the influence of said end rib urging means.

7. A wind controlled collapsible awning as defined in claim 6 wherein said wind pressure controlled mechanism comprises an inclined portion formed at the inner end of said push rod, a central one of said rib mem bers being upwardly rockable with respect to said support structure and having an abutment portion engageable with said inclined portion for moving said push rod inwardly into said second position when said central one of said rib members is rocked upwardly.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 582,199 5/1897 Grath 59 1,411,399 4/1922 Beagle 160-134 X 1,522,692 1/1925 Moore 160 134 X 2,517,281 8/1950 Brown 160-62 2,875,825 3/1959 Soares 160-134 X 3,134,426 5/1964 Cherubin 160-81 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,256,866 2/ 1961 France.

HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

D. L. TAYLOR, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A WIND ACTUATED COLLAPSIBLE AWNING COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A CENTRAL SUPPORT STRUCTURE, A PLURALITY OF ARCUATE RIB MEMBERS EACH PIVOTALLY SECURED AT ONE END TO SAID CENTRAL SUPPORT STRUCTURE AND EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY THEREFROM, A FLEXIBLE HOOD MEMBER STRETCHED IN COVERING RELATION UPON AND BETWEEN SAID RIB MEMBERS WHEN IN SPACED FAN-LIKE, EXTENDED DISPOSITION TO AN ARCUATE EXTENT OF SUBSTANTIALLY 180 CIRCULAR DEGREES RELATIVE TO SAID CENTRAL SUPPORT STRUCTURE WHEREAT SAID AWNING WILL BE IN EXTENDED POSITION, MEANS REMOVABLY SECURING SAID HOOD MEMBER TO SAID RIBS, MEANS RESILIENTLY URGING ONE OF THE END RIBS OF SAID PLURALITY OF RIB MEMBERS ARCU- 